The centerpiece of the Hanukkah celebration is the hanukkiah or menorah, a candelabra that holds nine candles. Eight candles symbolize the number of days that the Temple lantern blazed; the ninth, the shamash, is a helper candle used to light the others. Hanukkah is a celebration of them winning the war of the Maccabees over the larger Syrian army. The story of the miracle, as described in the Talmud, occurred after the liberation of the Temple in Jerusalem during the Maccabean Revolt, and describes how the finding of a jug of pure oil that was to be enough to light the lamp for one day; instead, it lasted for eight days.
